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Cottage Grove, Woodbury splash pads endorsed by parenting magazine

The splash pad at Highlands Park in Cottage Grove was included in Minnesota Parent magazine’s “14 Places for Kids to Cool Off.” The splash pad at Woodbury’s Bielenberg Sports Center also made the list. (Bulletin file photo)1 / 3

The splash pad at Highlands Park in Cottage Grove was included in Minnesota Parent magazine’s “14 Places for Kids to Cool Off.” The splash pad at Woodbury’s Bielenberg Sports Center also made the list. (Bulletin file photo)2 / 3

The splash pad at Highlands Park in Cottage Grove was included in Minnesota Parent magazine’s “14 Places for Kids to Cool Off.” The splash pad at Woodbury’s Bielenberg Sports Center also made the list. (Bulletin file photo)3 / 3

Two south Washington County splash pads are among the 14 best in the state, according to the latest issue of Minnesota Parent.

Included in their list of “14 Places for Kids to Cool Off” are the Highlands Park splash pad in Cottage Grove and the Bielenberg Sports Center splash pad in Woodbury.

The editors gushed about the sprayers and Highlands Park for its “numerous overhead and waist-level sprayers,” as well as the nearby trails, green space, picnicking area and athletic fields.

The Highlands Park splash pad is a zero-depth aquatic play area whose pillars spew cool water, mushroom fountains and small geysers. The touch-activated sprayers continuously drain and reuse the water, so there is never any water high enough for immersion.

The article noted that seating is limited, however, so parents might want to bring chairs.

The Bielenberg splash pad got the seal of approval for eco-friendly recycling of water and a push-button feature that lets a kid activate a new blast of water every 4 minutes from bubblers and buckets. The splash pad also has a smaller platform for toddlers and is located next to the new accessible playground Madison’s Place.

City of Woodbury Communications Coordinator Jason Egerstrom said they were excited about the endorsement of the Bielenberg Splash Pad.

“It’s been a really busy place all summer with Madison’s Place opening in early June,” he said. “The two places compliment each other really well. It shows that Bielenberg is not just a place for athletics.”

William Loeffler is a playwright and journalist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He worked 15 years writing features for the Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. He has also written travel stories based on his trips to all seven continents. He and his wife, Michelle, ran the Boston Marathon in 2009.